Kazakhstan begins chemical castration of paedophiles

The former Soviet republic, Kazakhstan, is set to begin the chemical castration of convicted paedophiles.

The procedure, which involves an injection supervised by the country’s health ministry, is punishment for those found guilty of child sex attack.

An unnamed sex attacker in Turkestan region will be the first to undergo the punishment procedure. He was found guilty of a child sex attack in April 2016.

Child rapes in the country doubled to around 1,000 a year in the period between 2010 and 2014.

Kazakhstan introduced the new law on chemical castration at the start of this year.

Deputy health minister Lyazat Aktayeva said there has been one request for chemical castration in accordance with a court ruling.

When the law was passed Senator Byrganym Aitimova said that castration would be temporary, consisting of a one-time injection based on the necessity of preventing the man from committing sexual violence.

Unlike surgical castration, chemical castration leaves organs intact and is considered to be reversible in most cases; while the drugs reduce sex drive they do not prevent a person experiencing sexual urges indefinitely.

The President, Nursultan Nazarbayev has allocated £20,500 for some 2,000 injections on men who commit sexual offences on children this year.

It was reported that the procedure in Kazakhstan will be carried out at regional psychoneurological clinics. Doctors will administer Cyproterone, a steroidal anti-androgen developed for fighting cancer.

Child sex crimes also carry prison sentences of up to 20 years in Kazakhstan.

Sceptics argue that the measure, first performed in the 1940s, does not necessarily prevent future attacks.